First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills
This paper explores the choice of math skills learning support by an undergraduate student cohort of Commerce and Business students at Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia. A survey methodology was used to determine the support students sought for the assumed math skills for a mandatory first-ye...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2019.1616654 |
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doaj-c500dba795604c4d9209cbb65eb2f2382021-02-18T10:31:41ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Education2331-186X2019-01-016110.1080/2331186X.2019.16166541616654First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skillsAnne Gleeson0Greg Fisher1Saib Dianati2Nicholas Smale3Flinders UniversityFlinders UniversityUniversity of QueenslandRMIT UniversityThis paper explores the choice of math skills learning support by an undergraduate student cohort of Commerce and Business students at Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia. A survey methodology was used to determine the support students sought for the assumed math skills for a mandatory first-year microeconomics subject. The majority of respondents (71%; 120 of n = 169) sought support outside of class for their math skills during the semester. The major source of support was from informal networks of friends and family (62% of respondents), with 40% of respondents seeking help from only this source. University support services from the centrally provided learning center and individual tutoring at course and subject level, were used by 31.4% of respondents, with a minority (8.9%) of respondents utilizing only University support. Students who only used their informal networks for math learning support were more likely to have a recent high school graduate profile, and students using university learning support services were more likely to fit a more diverse entry pathway profile. Recommendations for math skills support include the communication of assumed skills explicitly, early self-assessment of assumed skills through diagnostic tests, the institution of a peer learning strategy and the creation of online learning resources.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2019.1616654assumed skillsmath skillslearning support servicesacademic skills supportsupport-seeking behaviorhelp seeking behaviour |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Anne Gleeson Greg Fisher Saib Dianati Nicholas Smale |
spellingShingle |
Anne Gleeson Greg Fisher Saib Dianati Nicholas Smale First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills Cogent Education assumed skills math skills learning support services academic skills support support-seeking behavior help seeking behaviour |
author_facet |
Anne Gleeson Greg Fisher Saib Dianati Nicholas Smale |
author_sort |
Anne Gleeson |
title |
First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills |
title_short |
First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills |
title_full |
First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills |
title_fullStr |
First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills |
title_full_unstemmed |
First-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills |
title_sort |
first-year undergraduate business students’ choice of different sources of learning support for assumed math skills |
publisher |
Taylor & Francis Group |
series |
Cogent Education |
issn |
2331-186X |
publishDate |
2019-01-01 |
description |
This paper explores the choice of math skills learning support by an undergraduate student cohort of Commerce and Business students at Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia. A survey methodology was used to determine the support students sought for the assumed math skills for a mandatory first-year microeconomics subject. The majority of respondents (71%; 120 of n = 169) sought support outside of class for their math skills during the semester. The major source of support was from informal networks of friends and family (62% of respondents), with 40% of respondents seeking help from only this source. University support services from the centrally provided learning center and individual tutoring at course and subject level, were used by 31.4% of respondents, with a minority (8.9%) of respondents utilizing only University support. Students who only used their informal networks for math learning support were more likely to have a recent high school graduate profile, and students using university learning support services were more likely to fit a more diverse entry pathway profile. Recommendations for math skills support include the communication of assumed skills explicitly, early self-assessment of assumed skills through diagnostic tests, the institution of a peer learning strategy and the creation of online learning resources. |
topic |
assumed skills math skills learning support services academic skills support support-seeking behavior help seeking behaviour |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2019.1616654 |
work_keys_str_mv |
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